Big things were expected of Aston Martin when they entered Formula 1 as part of a Racing Point rebrand, but the team have so far failed to live up to the hype with Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel.
The team were tipped to carry on the success of Racing Point and use the immense resources of Aston Martin to become regular podium contenders, however the team only have one top three finish to their name so far, courtesy of Sebastian Vettel in Baku in 2021.
The team are affiliated with Mercedes, meaning that they receive certain parts from the Silver Arrows, as well as having their powerunit supplied by the team.
Technical director at Aston Martin Dan Fallows has revealed that his team eventually plan to take a more independent path away from Mercedes as they grow into Formula 1, but has insisted that so far the team’s reliance on Mercedes has not held them back at all.
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“When we look at the future, all is open and Lawrence [Stroll] has been really open about his ambitions for the team,” said Fallows.
“We will evaluate what is the next thing that will help us become more competitive, but at the moment, I don’t see any of the stuff we get from Mercedes as holding us back in any way.
“I certainly don’t feel that having the Mercedes HPP engine in our car has been in any way negative for us. I think it has proved its reliability, its performance is where it needs to be.
Aston Martin have enlisted the services of Fernando Alonso for 2023 and beyond after Sebastian Vettel called time on his stellar Formula 1 career in Abu Dhabi.
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The Spaniard, who has famously high standards for his teams, has expressed his delight at the team’s performance and potential following his first test with the team, boldly claiming that he could win a third championship during his time with the team.
Alonso grew frustrated with the reliability of Alpine’s powerunit in 2022, having to retire from six races over the course of the season which cost him a lot of points.
With Mercedes only experiencing one mechanical failure in 2022 and both Aston Martin drivers only failing to finish three races each, Alonso can be pleased with the reliability he can expect in 2023 as Aston Martin continue their partnership with the Silver Arrows.